Nate Paul ordered to jail by April 1

A Travis County district judge has ordered Austin real estate developer Nate Paul to begin serving a 10-day jail sentence for contempt of court starting April 1, for violations in a civil case over money owed to a charitable foundation, according to an amended order filed late Monday.

AUSTIN (KXAN) – A Travis County district judge has ordered Austin real estate developer Nate Paul to begin serving a 10-day jail sentence for contempt of court starting April 1, for violations in a civil case over money owed to a charitable foundation, according to an amended order filed late Monday.

District Judge Jan Soifer ordered Paul to jail as punishment for six separate acts of criminal contempt in the long-running case between Paul and The Mitte Foundation, according to the order. The Mitte Foundation sued Paul in 2021, seeking to recoup millions it invested in Paul’s real estate enterprise.

The Mitte Foundation case became intertwined with allegations against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton that led to Paxton’s 2023 impeachment and ultimate acquittal on all counts in a Senate trial in 2023. Paxton was accused of abusing his office to assist Paul – a friend of Paxton’s who donated to his campaign.

‘NBA Player’

Soifer’s order says Paul failed to report the transfer of $100,000 to “an NBA player” on June 22, 2022, in violation of an injunction that required Paul to report any transfers over $25,000.

Paul was confronted on Nov. 9, 2022, about the money transfer, and he claimed “not to remember,” according to the order. Soifer found Paul’s testimony about “lack of memory” wasn’t credible.

Paul “repeatedly disobeyed court orders” in the litigation and related matters and was sanctioned numerous times, according to the order.

“Mr. Paul’s lies to the court while under oath were pervasive and inexcusable, and served to deliberately thwart the functions of the Court in enforcing its Injunction,” according to the order. “Mr. Paul’s attempt to rely on advice of counsel is factually unbelievable, legally insupportable, and contradicted by the statements of his counsel.”

Five other violations followed the $100,000 money transfer, according to the order:

• The $100,000 transfer was not made for fair value. “Mr. Paul did not receive anything of value from the NBA player and Mr. Paul admitted he did not personally owe the NBA player any money.”
• Paul failed to report complete bank account records to the court at a Nov. 17, 2022, hearing.
• Perjury – Paul filed a false sworn report for June 2022 saying no transfers over $25,000 were made that month.
• Perjury – Paul falsely testified at a Nov. 9, 2022, hearing that he made no transfers over $25,000 in June of that year.
• Perjury – Paul falsely testified at a Nov. 17, 2022, hearing concerning the number of bank accounts in his name or under his personal control.

Paul fought the Travis County contempt order up to the Texas Supreme Court, which denied his petition for relief in a split, 5-4 decision, on March 15.

An attorney in Soifer's office said the court does not comment on matters before it.

An attorney for the Mitte foundation told KXAN they were "happy justice prevailed" in the case, following the Supreme Court's decision.

Paul's attorneys would not provide a comment to KXAN.

Supreme Court Justice Jane Bland – joined by Chief Justice Nathan Hecht, Justice John Devine, and Justice Brett Busby – wrote a dissent on the denial.

The dissent said the lower court should have appointed a local or independent prosecutor to handle contempt charges, rather than allowing a “financially interested party to prosecute the defendant,” which could violate the defendant’s due process right.

“Private prosecution of criminal contempt by a judgment creditor in a related civil action is likely a constitutional violation worthy of this Court’s attention,” according to the dissent.

The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers wrote an amicus brief in support of vacating Soifer’s criminal contempt order. The Association argued Paul was deprived of an “unbiased prosecutor” and wasn’t given proper notice of the charges against him.

“The interests underlying the Constitutional right to Due Process are simply too important to allow criminal convictions obtained in this manner to stand,” the Association wrote in its brief.

Separate from the Mitte Foundation case, federal authorities have indicted Paul on 12 counts of making false statements to lenders and wire fraud.

Paul was initially charged with eight counts of making false statements to mortgage lending companies and credit unions in June 2023. Each of those counts carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

In a superseding indictment filed in November 2023, federal authorities added four counts of wire fraud to the list of charges.

Paul pleaded not guilty to all charges, and he is scheduled to go to trial in November.